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PURPOSE: It is the purpose and intent of St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church to provide a safe, secure environment to teach and care for the children and students of our community.
GOAL: Our goal is to protect children from sexual abuse or child molestation by employees or volunteers in this church and to protect employees and volunteers from false accusations.
DEFINITION OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE: The National Resource Center on Child Sexual Abuse defines child sexual abuse as "any sexual activity with a child, whether in the home by a caretaker, in a day-care situation, in any organized ministry, whether at the main facility (church) or away, or in any other setting, including on the street by a person unknown to the child. The abuser may be an adult, an adolescent, or another child provided the child is four (4) years older than the victim."
Child sexual abuse can be violent or non-violent. It is criminal behavior that involves children in sexual behavior. Child sexual abuse can involve fondling; penetration of the oral, genital, and anal areas; intercourse; and forcible rape. Other forms of abuse can include verbal comments, pornographic videos, obscene phone calls, exhibitionism, or allowing children to witness sexual activity.
DEFINITION OF A MINOR: A minor is any individual under the age of 18 years.
The policy and procedure set forth below will apply to all people who give supervision or have custody of minors or who have opportunity to have contact with minors in church facilities or church sponsored activities.
For more information on St. Paul's child protection plan, contact the Church Administrator. |